Flash
by Sandshrew777
Summary: A photograph captures one instant in time. This photograph is of a boy, sitting on a stool, with a large hat on his head.


Click. Flash.

Click. Flash.

"Creevey, Colin!" came the authoritative voice of Professor Minerva McGonagall, reading from her famous First Year parchment of names. A boy ascended to the stool, feeling the eyes of Hogwarts focus upon him. He, unlike most of his classmates, was not nervous; on the contrary, Colin was excited. He, the son of a milkman, was going to a school for people with magic! He was, to put it into one word, ecstatic. As he settled his quivering-with-excitement body onto the conjured stool, he set the Sorting Hat upon his head, which immediately slipped down over his eyes, leaving him to see only blackness.

"Hmm, now what do we have here? Interesting, very intriguing," came a voice from just beyond the boy's ear. Colin almost greeted it vocally in response, but remembered the others who had been Sorted before him. He instead thought his greetings, and the Hat heard his thoughts.

"Hello to you, too, dear child. Now, I think---"

"How are you today?" the boy pressed relentlessly, intent on a pleasant conversation.

"Excellent, thanks. As I was saying---," the Hat responded, eager to do its duty, and yet failing, again.

"That's good. How long have you been doing this?" Colin queried, nonplussed by the Hat's slightly annoyed response previously.

"Years, my boy. If I could---"

"Really? Wow! That's amazing! Do you think I could take a picture of you after we're done?"

"Fine, whatever. Now...wait, what's a picture?" the confused Hat now turned the tables on Colin, asking a question of its own.

"You don't know what a picture is? It's, like, this little...uh...preservation of one tiny moment in time!" Colin chipperly replied mentally, proud of himself for using such a big word like 'preservation'.

"Like a portrait?"

"Yeah, kind of."

"I see. Well, child, let's get back to your Sorting. You do want Sorted, don't you?" the Hat teased. It had actually become rather fond of this boy.

"Oh, yes! I can't wait to be sordid!" Colin screeched mentally. If the Hat had ears, they would have been pierced by the volume of Colin's response. The ears would also be moving back and forth in a horizontal motion, because if the Hat had a head, it would be shaking it right now.

"Not sordid, my boy. Sorted. S-O-R-T-E-D," the Hat spelled it out patiently for the enthusiastic boy.

"Oh! Sorry!" Colin apologised.

"No need to be sorry. It, ah, happens all the time," the Hat lied, trying to assuage the poor boy. "Now, if we could progress to your Sorting?"

"Sure!"

"Good. I see here a bright, cheery disposition...an inquenchable thirst for taking...pictures (if the Hat had a tongue, the new word would have rolled off of it with difficulty)...and a great love for family. But none of that applies to Houses, really..." the Hat mused, doing its usual dance, pretending to ponder about the boy's placement even though it already knew its recommendation from the moment it had touched Colin's head. It always knew where it should place a child immediately---what took so long was usually waiting for the student to voice their own opinion. The Hat had been designed to combine both its own Legilimantic research that took only seconds with the student's own thoughts about the matter in order to find the perfect placement for each Hogwarts student. It was to point out the positives of its own choice and attempt to wheedle the student into agreeing with it. Some, to the Hat's pleasure, did agree.

Others, however, did not. Those were the students that the Hat gained the most pleasure from, for they were the ones who took charge of their own destiny. They did not let others push them around; they were grounded. They knew their place, their strengths, their weaknesses, and their minds were made up. They were headstrong. They were the leaders of each generation.

But this boy, this Colin Creevey...he was a bit of an anomaly. His mind jumped from thought to thought with astounding alacrity. It was somewhat difficult for the Hat to really analyse the correct way to try and convince this boy to go into the House it had chosen for him.

"Ah, yes...here we are...I see in you an immense amount of possibility. You acquire these...pictures (the Hat tried the word again, with somewhat lessening difficulty) with quite the insatiable appetite. You take as many as you possibly can in order to preserve what your mind says is a...candid moment. You strive for perfection in this matter, an asset to many a Slytherin. But I do not see in you a thirst to thrust yourself past your humble beginnings. No, you would not prosper in that House.

"I also see in you an amazing amount of perception. As you sort through these...preservations of unique moments, you know exactly which ones have the most value. This ability to recognise a good...picture (the Hat was almost used to the word by now) could serve you well in Ravenclaw. It is difficult to spot a good research book, and those with the ability to see things for what they are will be welcomed there. You are also quiet, now. Your mind has calmed and you are listening to what I have to say. That shows wisdom. Alas, you do not have the patience for the Ravenclaw House. You would feel...displaced, I believe.

"So that leaves Hufflepuff and Gryffindor. You take your pictures (the Hat had finally managed to 'say' it easily) most seriously, and you never give up on them. You work hard to make sure you have done a good job on them, and this is an excellent Hufflepuff trait. You also have a fierce loyalty to your family, and you would never sacrifice them for any worldly thing. You love them with all your heart. Yes, yes, I see the House for you must be---"

"Wait! You didn't say anything about Gryffindor."

The Hat knew it liked this boy.

"Well...what about Gryffindor?" the Hat asked slyly.

"You said it was for brave people. Well, I'm brave! Whenever Mum sees a spider, she yells for me to come take care of it when Dad's not there. That takes a lot of courage, I'd say!" Colin boasted.

"I still think you would do well in Hufflepuff, though," the Hat insisted.

"Why? You told me why I can't be in Slytherin and Ravenclaw. Why not Gryffindor?" Colin was determined to find out what this Hat wasn't telling him, come heaven or high water.

"All right, child, I'll tell you 'Why not Gryffindor?'. When you got into the boat to get here, earlier, you were scared that you were going to fall out. And, when you've done something bad at home, you're afraid of your Dad when he starts yelling, aren't you? When you got your Hogwarts letter, you nearly fainted when you started reading it. You were scared that the letter was true, Colin. You were scared that you would have to leave your family behind and go to a school out in the middle of nowhere that you had never heard of before. What was your mother going to do without you there to fend off the spiders? Who was she going to call on? Dennis? Dennis could no more kill a spider than he could turn a pig into a butterfly! You were frightened, Colin, of what was going to happen to them. Now, why would you ever think Gryffindor was the right House for you?" the Hat asked, feeling triumphant. It was good today. Really good. Hearing nothing for a few moments, it opened its brim to send the boy off to Hufflepuff.

"But I came, didn't I? I came to Hogwarts. I mean, yeah, I was scared to leave my family and go to some place that I didn't know, but I did. I want to be a wizard. It's cool, you know? Hogwarts is really wicked. I can't wait to get my camera back from Professor McDracula over there so I can take some pictures! She's a bit mean, really. Reminds me of my principal at school. Man, was she mean! And ugly, too; she had this one really huge wart on her nose---"

"All right, all right. Are you sure you want Gryffindor?"

A pause. Then:

"Yeah! It sounds cool."

"Then that's where you're going. GRYFFINDOR!" the Hat called, and Colin gleefully removed the Hat, hopping down from the stool. Professor McDracula---er, McGonagall---took the Hat from the boy's eager hands as he sped off to join his new housemates.

The Hat knew it had liked that boy. He had a lot of spunk, and a lot more courage than the Hat was willing to tell him. If it told him how much bravery he possessed in that tiny little body, it knew Colin would get a big head. He was a boy, after all, and boys do like to show off. The point was, Colin Creevey was a determined little boy. The fact that he had actually greeted a sentient Hat instead of quivering with trepidation was a glowing example of just how Gryffindor this boy was.

"Hmm, what do we have here..." the Hat now began with a nervous little girl, trying to figure out what path to take to convince her to go to Ravenclaw.

It loved its job.

Click. Flash.

Click. Flash.


End file.
